Osama bin Laden killed by US special forces

EU leaders speak of relief but urge caution.

EU leaders have welcomed the news that Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda and mastermind of the 11 September 2001 attacks, has been killed by US special forces.

David Cameron, the UK’s prime minister, said bin Laden’s death would “bring great relief to people across the world”. Nicolas Sarkozy, France’s president, said the terrorist leader’s death was a “major event in the global fight against terrorism”.

Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the European Council, and José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, said in a joint statement that bin Laden’s death “makes the world a safer place”.

Barack Obama, the US president, made a televised address earlier today, saying that bin Laden had been killed in a US military raid on a compound in Pakistan. Obama said bin Laden’s death was a major victory against global terrorism. US special forces launched an assault on a compound in Abbottabad, 30 miles north-east of Islamabad, Obama said.

Jerzy Buzek, the president of the European Parliament, said that while the death of bin Laden was good news, the fight against terrorism “is not over”.

Alexander Lambsdorff, a German Liberal MEP, said: “Al-Qaeda has killed thousands of people of different nationality, skin colour and religion, not only in the US but also in Spain, England, Tunisia, Pakistan and other countries.”

Click Here: cheap INTERNATIONAL jersey

Steven Vanackere, Belgium’s caretaker foreign minister, said the fight against terrorism had to continue, adding that bin Laden’s death “is not the end of al-Qaeda”. He said bin Laden’s death could result in a backlash from the terrorist group and that Belgium was considering putting troops stationed in Afghanistan on higher alert.